got a meeting? take a walk

My good friend Nilofer Merchant spoke at TED this year, and posited a radical concept:  your sitting at your desk all day might be killing you.  So the next time you schedule a meeting with someone, instead of holding it in a soulless conference room, do things a little differently ... go outside and walk.

Click the image above to listen to her 3-1/2 minute talk.

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Are you a lawyer, looking for more cool ways to make your practice more awesome? Lime Retreats is for you -- a getaway for attorneys who would love to get away, relax, and hopefully even pick up some CLE credits along the way. To receive more details, click here to fill out this form, and be one of the first people notified when registration is open. And don't forget to like us on Facebook!

what makes us feel good about our work?

I love this TED talk by Dan Ariely about what it is that makes us feel good about our work.  It turns out that money isn't the great motivator, it's meaning. In fact, here are the insights of his talk:

1.  Seeing the fruits of our labour may make us more productive.
2. The less appreciated we feel our work is, the more money we want to do it.
3.  The harder a project is, the prouder we feel of it.
4.  Knowing that our work helps others may increase our unconscious motivation.
5.  The promise of helping others makes us more likely to follow rules.
6.  Positive reinforcement about our abilities may increase performance
7.  Images that trigger positive emotions may actually help us focus.

Take a look at the 20 minute video above for more.  Does this ring true for you?

"i think we all need a pep talk."

I've been working really hard on the agenda for Lime Retreats, and as part of my research, I've been learning a lot about the state of the legal profession.  It's pretty grim:  we are, in general, a stressed-out bunch.

So I figure we all need a pep talk.

Click the video above for Kid President encouragement.

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Are you a lawyer, looking for a quiet place to get away, rejuvenate and maybe even start planning how you can do more great work?  Lime Retreats is for you -- a getaway for attorneys who would love to get away, relax, and hopefully even pick up some CLE credits along the way. To receive more details, click here to fill out this form, and be one of the first people notified when registration is open.  And don't forget to like us on Facebook!

"in some ways, doing great work is a counter-cultural act."

I stumbled across this video yesterday, and I have to say it resonated with me in a way that a video hasn't in a long time.  Michael Bungay Stanier is a business coach and the author of the book Do More Great Work:  Stop the Busywork. Start the Work that Matters.  He says that every type of work that we do is "bad work, good work or great work," and that while good work keeps us safe, great work is the work that both energizes us, and makes a difference to our worlds.

Click the image above to watch his amazing interview -- the nuggets you'll glean from the next 30 minutes might seriously change how you approach your workday.  It definitely has mine.

(Incidentally, the video also mentions another work of Stanier's, End Malaria -- a book that is literally saving lives, with writings from a group of amazing authors about doing great work.  Consider picking up a copy to help -- I already own this book, and it's truly inspiring.)

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Are you a lawyer, looking for a quiet place to get away, rejuvenate and maybe even start planning how you can do more great work?  Lime Retreats is for you -- a getaway for attorneys who would love to get away, relax, and hopefully even pick up some CLE credits along the way. To receive more details, click here to fill out this form, and be one of the first people notified when registration is open. And don't forget to like us on Facebook!

non-judgment in a career that requires ... judgment

In my book, The Beauty of Different, I talk about a difficult time in my life -- a 12-month period that included getting divorced, studying for the bar exam (which, trust me, is its own concentric circles of hell) and being laid off from my very first law job.  I managed to get through it all, in part by creating a focused and concentrated gratitude practice:  intentionally taking the time to notice, reflect and be thankful for the good in my life, even amongst all the bad.

My gratitude practice at the time led me to read tons of books on the concept of mindfulness and living in the present, including the concept of nonjudgment -- the ability to perceive things as they are, without ascribing a positive or negative value to them.  The theory, as I understood it, is that by cultivating this level of detachment, you are able to achieve a certain level of personal peace and calm.

The more I studied this, the more uneasy I became.  You see my struggle, right?  Here I was, a young lawyer, just starting out in a profession that on its face, was completely counter to the tenets of peace, mindfulness and non-judgment.  Let's be real:  law is rife with conflict.  With judgment.  Surely finding calm and practicing non-judgment while practicing law is a virtual impossibility?

Well, you can imagine my delight yesterday when I discovered that there is a movement afoot:  the concept of mindful lawyering.  This concept is considered so important to the practice of law that the University of California at Berkeley actually has curricula in its law school dedicated to this, led by the Berkeley Initiative for Mindfulness in Law, created to explore how meditation and reflectiveness can affect the legal practice.  In their words:

We are working to build a vibrant community in which students, faculty and staff can integrate the insights of meditation into their work and studies in order to foster a more just, compassionate and reflective legal system.

Kind of awesome, right?  And note that while their advisory council includes a few members who practice Buddhist tradition, the mission of the initiative does not invoke any sort of religious imperative.   Regardless, just the fact that an initiative like this exists encourages me:  I love the possibility that we can transform the legal system -- or at least, our personal legal practices -- by individual methods of introspection and reflection.   Buddhist meditation is certainly one method of reflection, but I suspect that many other practices work just as well.  In my case, I'm not someone who meditates with any sort of regularity (the phrase "seldom to never" comes to mind), but I've continued my gratitude practice from decades ago; furthermore, I'm an avid journaler, and have been for years.  And lately, I'm finding that my practice of introspection through journaling is leading me back to the profession of law in a far more rewarding way than I could've ever imagined back when I was just beginning my law career.

I think there's something to this.  And I'm interested in learning more.

So, I'd love to hear your thoughts:  are you an attorney who has an avid mindfulness practice? Or do you have a different type of introspection practice to which you strictly adhere?  Has it enhanced your work? 

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For what it's worth, here are some other sources on the concept of mindful lawyering that I found while clicking around:

• The Six-Minute Solution:  A Mindfulness Primer for Lawyers, by Scott L. Rogers

• The Affective Assistance of Counsel:  Practicing Law as a Healing Profession, by Marjorie Ann Silver (I actually bought this one -- I'll let you know what I think once I've read it.  Because i'm dying to learn more about how you can detach in law, and still remain fully engaged.  That, right there, might be the secret to life.)
  

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Looking for some R&R, and a way to add a bit of introspection in your own legal practice?  Lime Retreats is a getaway for attorneys who would love to get away, relax, and maybe even pick up some CLE credits along the way. To receive more details, click here to fill out this form, and be one of the first people notified when registration is open. And don't forget to like us on Facebook!

the happy secret to better work

I was reminded recently by someone on Facebook of this funny and intriguing TED talk by Shawn Achor, detailing his research that the practice of happiness can actually produce better and more successful work.

Click the image above to watch his entertaining talk. 

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Are you a lawyer (or know a lawyer) who could use a little R&R? Lime Retreats is a getaway for attorneys who would love to get away, relax, and maybe even pick up some CLE credits along the way. To receive more details, click here to fill out this form, and be one of the first people notified when registration is open. And don't forget to like us on Facebook!

my top 7 tips for enjoying my vacation without guilt

In this day and technological age, most of us are equipped with all kinds of gadgets to keep us connected.  We have smart phones that allow us to be contacted or make phone calls any time of day or night, and even check email at a moment's notice; our laptops and iPads make it possible to have our offices with us wherever we go.  Technology makes us productivity machines.

Which, you know, is awesome.  Except when it isn't.

The problem, of course, is when our smart phones and our laptops set the expectation with the people we work with or our clients that we are always accessible -- and let's face it, there are times when we don't want to be, like when we're on vacation.  And if you think about it, you're owed that vacation -- in many employment situations, your vacation is part of your compensation  package.  You deserve to take it.  Besides, enjoying your vacation to the fullest allows you to return to work ready to tackle all of its challenges with a brand new, fresh, renewed outlook. 

So:   while I can't promise that your colleagues or clients won't try to nag you while you're away getting some well-earned R&R, the following are my top tips for minimizing interference from people back home, maximizing my me-time on vacation, and avoiding ticking off my coworkers or clients in the process.

1.  When I'm booking my vacation, I try to schedule my date of return at least 2 days before I actually have to be back to my office.  Nothing is worse that returning from your vacation late the night before you have to wake up early to go to work.  So I allow for at least a day at home in between to slowly transition back into my working life.

2.  In anticipation of my trip, I tell my coworkers, colleagues and clients that I'll be traveling.  I start tying up loose ends on matters that will be able to wait until after I return to address again, and if possible, I delegate any outstanding work to colleagues, in the event anything needs to be addressed in my absence.  I let clients know that I'll be gone, but that their matters are being handled in my absence, and let them know who to contact should anything arise.  But I always begin by setting the expectation that I will be unavailable for a brief time.

3.  I make sure my automated out-of-office email responder is on.  I know this seems like a no-brainer, but here's the trick:  your responder should set the expectation that you will not be easily reachable (even if you will).  I say something like, "I'm sorry to have missed you, but I will be traveling until X date, and will have extremely limited access to email.  If this is urgent, in my absence please contact Y at ______ for immediate assistance.  Otherwise, I'll respond to your email as soon as possible after my return."  I might actually check in frequently on my vacation ... but they don't have to know that.

4.  When I set my out-of-office email responder, I set it to turn off a day later than I'll actually be back in the office.  This allows me to have a relatively quiet day back in the office, and I can get my head back into the working game before the phone starts ringing off the wall.  If i get into the office and realize that I don't need the extra day, I'll turn it off early.  But it's nice to have that cushion, just in case.

5.  I tell only one person -- one I can trust -- how he can get a hold of me when I'm on vacation.  Now that I've let everybody believe that I'm not going to be accessible, I divulge to one person how I can be contacted in an absolute emergency (e.g., a trusted assistant).  Make it clear that you do not want to be bothered, and you will be checking your email once a day (or every other day), and will respond then if it's an emergency. 

6.  While on vacation, I turn my phone to silent.  The temptation to answer a ringing phone is often overwhelming.  So I don't listen to it ring.  But  ...

7.  I check in after my day is done (or before my starts) -- bonus points if I do it during a time that I know no one is in the office to respond.  I allow myself only 1 hour of the day to do this -- I just scan my emails and delete or archive the ones that don't need a response, respond quickly to the ones that need an immediate answer, and for those items that don't require an immediate answer, I mark them as "unread" and leave them in my inbox to deal with when I get back home.  In this way, when I return to my office, my inbox won't be overwhelming, and I'll have a vague idea of what I need to deal with.

Now, admittedly, handling my vacation in this manner doesn't mean that my vacation is completely work-free.  But it ensures that any guilt about being away from the office is mitigated, while still leaving 90% of my day to enjoy my family, a few good books, and feeling the sand between my toes.  Furthermore, because I've properly set expectations with the people I work with, I return relatively sure that I've not disappointed anyone by being away.  And I invariably have a much better outlook on life to tackle my work when I'm back in my office.

How about you?  What tips and tricks do you have to make the most of your vacation?

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Are you a lawyer (or know a lawyer) who could use a little R&R? Lime Retreats is a getaway for attorneys who would love to get away, relax, and maybe even pick up some CLE credits along the way. To receive more details, click here to fill out this form, and be one of the first people notified when registration is open.And don't forget to like us on Facebook!

the 8 secrets of success, as told by past attendees of TED

Via the always informative LifeHacker, Richard St. Johns shares his research on the secrets to success, as divined from the answers of past attendees of TED -- and he does it all in under 4 minutes. 

(Spoiler alert:  it's not all about money.)

Click the image above to watch the awesome.

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Are you a lawyer (or know a lawyer) who could use a little R&R? Lime Retreats is a getaway for attorneys who would love to get away, relax, and maybe even pick up some CLE credits along the way. To receive more details, click here to fill out this form, and be one of the first people notified when registration is open.And don't forget to like us on Facebook!

top 10 ways to reduce stress right this very minute

According to latest studies, lawyers have overtaken the dentists in being the most stressed professionals in the United States.  Obviously, this is a huge issue that needs to be addressed across the practice, but the truth is that lawyer or not, stress is something we all struggle with.  And so, in the event that you're experiencing stress right this very minute, here are my top 10 ways I manage stress in the moment.  If you're not experiencing any stress right now, that's great!  Still, consider bookmarking (or Pinteresting!) this page in the event some unwelcome stress does wander your way -- perhaps then, something here will help you, too.

1.  Listen to the sounds of nature for two minutes.  This link will take you to a site with a beautiful seascape and the sounds of the ocean on it.  Just sit and stare at it.  If your mind strays to whatever it is that's stressing you out, pull it back to the ocean.   It's only for two minutes.  Everything else can wait.  

2.  Virtually visit the Sistine Chapel.  For a more religiously-inspired moment of peace, you can click this link and virtually visit the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican in Italy.  You can even use your mouse to explore it, while a choir sings in the background (so be sure to have your headphones on if you're working in a shared space).  

3.  Make a cup of tea.  Although it makes no logical sense (since both coffee and tea contain caffeine), coffee is usually associated with "waking up," while tea is associated with "slowing down."  So whenever I feel my blood pressure rise, I make a cup of tea (decaffeinated, if I'm really stressed).  In fact, I even travel with tea -- I always have a little baggie filled with my favourite teabags in my handbag.  I take my own tea to drink on planes (I'm a nervous flyer), and often make myself a cup at night to wind down stressful days on the road. Tea is like my instant reminder to breathe.

4.  Practice a little aromatherapy.  I don't know anything about aromatherapy, but I do know that when I smell lavender or eucalyptus, I feel immediately calmer.  I once received this as a freebee in a gift bag, and it's really fantastic to rub on my hands and the back of my neck to relieve stress; however, one of the easiest tricks while you're at the office is to simply have some lavender-scented hand lotion nearby; or even better, scented sanitizer.  I like this one and this one -- great, calming scents and clean hands.  Bonus.

5.  Light a candle.  Something about the flickering light that helps make my surroundings feel a bit calmer.  And if you happen to work in an office where they'll frown on an open flame, stick one of these in a small translucent container, and your mind may never know the difference.

6.  Go outside.  Sometimes a change of scenery is all it takes.  Take 5 minutes and go outside, and breathe the air, people watch or whatever.  Just change focus for a few minutes.

7.  Music, music, music.  For me, music is everything.   A while back, I was having a pretty lengthy procedure done at the dentist, and to get ready, my husband Marcus put together a special playlist to take with me, filled with songs that either made me happy or made me calm while I was in the chair.  I call it my "Keep Calm & Carry On" playlist.  Put together a special one for yourself for listening when you need to take a break.

8.  Go to your happy place.  When things get a bit tough, I close my eyes and imagine myself sitting in one of my favourite places of my memory (lately it's floating in the middle of the cove at Coco Reef, Tobago).  A few minutes of imagination, and my heart rate slows down, and I'm ready to tackle life again.

9.  Meditate.  I am certainly not a pro at meditation, and while I used to do it daily, I have fallen deeply out of practice.  (An aside:  I will admit that when I was meditating daily, I was far better at handling stress.  I'm here to tell you that a regular meditation practice is a very good thing.)  That said, nothing can restore my sanity like 5 minutes of meditation.  There are many ways to do it, and you can find all sorts of instruction on the internet about how to do it (for beginners, I like this one and definitely this one).  Ultimately, however, I would recommend doing whatever works for you.  The point is to focus your mind.  And for what it's worth, here's how I do it:

I imagine that I'm alone  in a dark tunnel, and there's a light ahead just around a bend in the tunnel.  As I walk toward it and around the bend, I realize that there's another bend, and the light is actually around that one.  I continue to follow the light and the light continues to move away from me.  I imagine this for 5 minutes.  When my thoughts stray, I bring myself back to my tunnel, and start following the light again.

See?  Simple.  But if that doesn't work for you ...

10.  Breathe.  Literally close your eyes and breathe.  Inhale for 1 slow count, then exhale for 1 slow count.  Then inhale for 2 slow counts ... then exhale for 2 slow counts.  Then inhale for 3 slow counts ... and so on.  Try to get to 10 slow counts.  When you think you can't inhale any more, just do it anyway.  And then exhale for 10 slow counts. 

Then open your eyes.

Here's wishing you peace, friends.

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Are you a lawyer (or know a lawyer) who could use a little R&R? Lime Retreats is a getaway for attorneys who would love to get away, relax, and maybe even pick up some CLE credits along the way. To receive more details, click here to fill out this form, and be one of the first people notified when registration is open.  And don't forget to like us on Facebook!

the story behind lime retreats

It's no secret that I'm a licensed attorney, although I haven't practiced in coming up on 4 years now.  Still, I maintain my license (I think of it as my safety net), which means that every year, I take 15 hours of continuing legal education ("CLE"), 3 hours of which are ethics and professional responsibility.  For the most part, I take the courses online (if you follow me on Twitter, you've likely seen me live-tweeting some of what I've learned), but I've also occasionally taken in-person courses.  My dirty little secret:  I actually like taking the courses, even despite the fact that they're often dryly presented, in soulless conference rooms.  I like them because it's one of the few times in my life that I get to stay in touch with the legal world.  Besides, every and all attorney jokes to the contrary, I believe law to be, at its core, an honourable profession.  Lawyers help enact laws pertaining to and protecting civil rights.  Most of us who became lawyers held Atticus Finch as our model.  And I'm proud to say that there are very few lawyers I know who I don't trust implicitly and completely, and that's the truth.

This all said, I'm sort of amazed at how few lawyers I meet who really enjoy what they do.  Inevitably, when someone asks me where I practice, and I respond that I don't,  a wistful look comes across his face.  "Lucky," they say, almost whispering, leaving me feeling a bit sad and guilty.  I frequently am asked "how did you manage to escape?" and "you don't miss it, do you?"  And the truth is that while I don't miss the culture around practicing law, I do miss being around law.  Paradoxical, right?

To make matters more complicated, two of my most recent CLE courses were around stress management and the rules of professional responsibility around "fitness to practice."  And in both of those courses, it was confirmed:  lawyers are currently the most addicted, depressed and suicidal professionals in the United States.

How horrifying is that?

So here I am, writing books and holding online courses on discovering what your superpowers are and maximizing how often you practice them, and members of my previous profession, who I believe got into the profession for all the right reasons, are suffering. 

Which led me to think:  what if I created a retreat for lawyers, one which, instead of being all about legal policies and procedures,  was more about remembering why we entered the profession in the first place, and figuring out how our superpowers can help us craft our careers so that allow us to do what it is that lights us up?  And what if I could do it in a way that allowed for a lot of downtime, a lot of connecting with others in the profession in a casual but beautiful setting, and -- here's the perk -- allowed us to pick up a few CLE credits along the way?

Which brings me to Lime Retreats.  I'm still in the very beginning stages of planning, and I know I won't be able to pull it off until 2013, but early feedback seems to indicate that it's a good idea.  As for why I chose the name "lime" -- aside from the fact that it's a delicious fruit,  in my country of Trinidad & Tobago, the word "lime" has an additional meaning:  it means "to hang out," or "spend time with."  So you lime with your friends one afternoon on the patio, to watch the sun go down and have a fruity beverage.  Or you go over to your buddy's house for a lime -- you know, have good meal, relax, that sort of thing.  

It's the vibe that I really hope you'll find at Lime Retreats.

So.

If you're a lawyer, and this sounds interesting to you, please click here and fill out the form so I can let you know when all the details are available.  If you're not a lawyer, but you have a friend who is (and for whom this ideas sounds like something they'd enjoy), please consider forwarding this link to them.

My hope is that the retreat will help you fall in love with your practice again.